Combining Two Lessons
I recently came back to two videos that remind us of important lessons in life. Two videos that are important to watch every few months, because too often, it’s easy to forget the lessons we have already learned. Too often it’s easy to fall back into bad habits, negative thoughts, and day-to-day routines. The first video, describes the time we have in our life. It shows us the time we spend doing different things, and the time we have leftover. It prompts us to think, what are we going to do with that time? Check Facebook? Read? Practice hobbies? Spend time with friends and family? It asks us how much of that time we have already used up.
Watch here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOksW_NabEk
The second video, discusses what we would do in the absence of money. What do we like to do? What do we want to do? It encourages us to do that, only that, and not worry about the money. Because why would you spend your life doing something you don’t want to be doing?
See it here:
https://vimeo.com/63961985
These videos both make good points, and it is the combination of the two ideas that I want to talk about. The first video, showing us how much time we generally have leftover, is rather terrifying. Between work, sleep, commuting, self-hygiene – how much time do we really have left? Apparently not that much. The second video, showing us that we shouldn’t spend the time we do have doing things we dislike, is inspiring, causing many of us to have a desire to drop everything and go road trip to the mountains and not waste one more minute doing anything we remotely don’t want to do.
But the truth is, we do have to spend some time in our lives doing things we don’t LOVE to do. The first video shows us that. We have to spend time sleeping, eating, showering, commuting. We do have to spend time at work in order to have the means to take care of ourselves and live a full life. And we do have some time leftover for other things.
It is also true that we shouldn’t spend our lives doing only things we don’t like (second video). Spending most of our days (work) answering to someone else, doing meaningless work, and watching the clock until 5pm until we can go home and Netflix (and chill).
But, as always, there is an in between. There is a balance we must find. Because, if there is one thing I have learned in my life so far, balance is the key to ultimate success.
My proposition, is this. To find work that means something to you – even if it isn’t your dream job yet. To have faith that more work will come, that by taking steps, you are leading yourself to the day when you will wake up and in fact do exactly what you want to do.
My proposition is to listen to your favorite songs on repeat during your commute. To get ready in the morning whilst repeating everything you are grateful for in your head and looking in the mirror, happy with who you are and where you are going. To enjoy your meals and be grateful for each bite.
My proposition is to make every day count.
No, you can’t go to Thailand right now because “it could be your last.” That’s not how life works. Sometimes, you have to have patience, practice perseverance, and work hard to get there. Sometimes you have obligations and mouths to feed.
You don’t have to make every day count by spending every single one on the ski slopes (although you should spend a lot if that’s your thing). But you can make every day count by enjoying each moment. You make it count with every song you listen to that gives you butterflies. With every smile that comes across your face. With every hello you extend to a stranger. With every text you send to a loved one.
With every connection you make, with every feeling you feel.
Make every day count in a small way. Do things you love, and don’t be discouraged if you aren’t at the top of Mt. Everest yet.
Good things come in time. And time is limited, so use it wisely – make it count.